PFOAs
Gather round for a cautionary tale about a chemical wreaking havoc on our environment, polluting our water and making us sick. PERFLUORINATED CARBOXYLIC ACID or PFOA, is a flurochemical was first produced in the 1940s by a well known company 3M. By the early 1950s this chemical was being purchased by another company we know, DuPont, to manufacture a flouropolymer that we know as TEFLON. And so the story begins. As far back as the 1950s both plants had been dumping the chemical waste into the Ohio river in West Virginia. By 1961 both companies had been doing years of research on the harmful side effects of its chemical, and in-house toxicologist deemed PFOA or C8 was TOXIC and should be handled with caution. 1961!!!!!
1970 factory workers were found to have high levels of PFOA in their bodies.
1981 The link between PFOA exposure and birth defects was proven and pregnant factory workers had suffered the consequences.
1984 Both companies knew the chemical could be carried in the dust and that dust extended far beyond the property lines reaching surrounding communities.
1991 It was determined by DuPont scientists that an INTERNAL SAFETY LIMIT of PFOA was 1 part per billion yet they knew surrounding areas had 3 times that amount.
In this time period workers were constantly getting ill, suffering from what they commonly termed “the Teflon flu”. Workers were referred to in house doctors. They were also given “perks” for working their. It wasn’t until 1998 that a cattle farmer who surrounded the DuPont plant requested legal help from Rob Bilott- a partner at a firm that actually focused on defending chemical companies by learning the environment laws and understanding the chemical regulations so these companies could adapt. Armed with disturbing footage of frothy green water and sickly dying cows a 20 year case ensued, ending in 2017 with DuPont paying over $600 million dollars in settlement claims.
The verdict PFOAs were TOXIC and the company knew it for decades!
These chemicals have a half life of anywhere from 2-9 years which means they remain and accumulate in our bodies tissues for decades. The results?? Obesity, cancer, hormone disruption, neurotoxicity, ulcerative colitis, liver toxicity.
These organic compounds, once brought to light, became the focus of the 2015 Madrid Statement, where 230 scientists set forth to raise awareness on PFOA, push for government and manufacturing regulations and create safe labeling.
2015!!!!!
The Enviornmental Protection Agency set a lifetime drinking water health advisory limit of 70 ppt (parts per trillion). Some states have adopted harsher regulations. For instance New Jersey has a 13 ppt for PFOA levels in drinking water. Way to go NJ!!!
The moral of the story is there are over 60,000 unregulated chemicals being used today. The EPA performs testing on these chemicals ONLY when proved to be harmful! In the case of PFOA this was a 2 decade long, grueling process.